


Branded

by TazaraTerumi



Category: Hazbin Hotel (Web Series)
Genre: Blood Kink, Blood and Gore, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, M/M, Magic, Original Character(s), Slow Build, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:41:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25316221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TazaraTerumi/pseuds/TazaraTerumi
Summary: The dissolution of former bonds leaves a trio stranded in a place unlike their own. While some take the opportunity to make a new name for themselves, others just want to finally forget their haunted past.Updates are loosely scheduled at every 2 weeks! Art will be added on or around the same time the new chapter is posted!
Relationships: Alastor (Hazbin Hotel)/Reader, Charlie Magne/Vaggie, Lilith Magne/Lucifer Magne
Kudos: 30





	1. The Beginning of the End

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all so much for your patience!
> 
> I had a hard time working through the first chapter but I truly hope that you enjoy my first fic in a very long time!
> 
> Marce - They/Them (MC/Reader)  
> Sacha - He/Him  
> Celine - She/Her
> 
> Please feel free to leave comments on what you think! I would love to hear some feedback!

“Alright! Load ‘em up!”, a gruff voice shouted over the commotion.

Moonlight shone on a small clearing just outside of affluent suburbia. Several wagons were set up in a semi-circle and with a small bonfire to tie the whole campsite together, one could almost call it home. “Move it!”, came the voice again.

Chains rattled as the whimpering of children pervaded the night air. These chains were fastened around the wrists of children of various ages. Tall and short. Young and just beginning to mature, it was all too clear what was going on here. The chains continued jangling as they shuffled almost hypnotically into the entrance of the wagons and once full, their fates were all sealed with a loud metal clang. “Is that all of ‘em?”, the same gruff voice asked, “They’ll have our heads if any of ‘em go missin’.”

“Yeah. Yeah. Don’t get your panties in a bunch.”, came another smooth voice, “I don’t even know why anyone wants these rejects. Their parents sold them so clearly something must be wrong.”

“Well we don’t ask the questions now do we? We just do. The. Job.”, the gruff voice hissed at the other before slightly coming into view.

The owner was large with a pair of huge arms and hands to match. Unfortunately, with the moon as the only source of light on this side of the wagon, it was hard to see anything past the huge, wiry beard that consumed his neck. A wailing cry cut through the night, pulling the attention of the huge man and his associate. Their footsteps hurried off in its direction.

  
Now the wagon was almost silent. Save for a few sniffles and other children muttering in their psychosis, there was finally some peace. Towards the back of the wagon sat one of the smaller kids, one of auburn hair and sea-green eyes. She did not mutter. She did not cry. She just stared blankly out of the bars of the wagon, past the other children, her eyes fixed on the tree line. Deep down, she was hoping they would come. They would notice that she was caught in the now monthly raids that plagued their small community. “Maybe they didn’t get back yet.”, she whispered to herself.

Some low grown bushes began to rustle bringing a light to those large sea-green eyes. There was hope, maybe. The rustling stopped for a second before a slender hand popped out with a quick wave before vanishing into the foliage again. ‘It’s them!’, she thought with an inward smile.

Out of the bush came an older looking child, around the age of fifteen. Their chocolate skin and even darker brown eyes trained on the cart that they waved at just a moment ago. Right behind them was another, clearly older than any in the current stock and the one in from of them. He looked to be about eighteen at the oldest and clearly not in the mood for whatever it is they were about to get themselves into. The young girl within the wagon watched as her two saviors quietly crept over to the metal door the group was herded through not too long ago. They both examined the door, pulled on it, and even looked for something as simple as a latch to no avail. It was as if the door was welded shut without any evidence of damage from fire or any realistic source of heat. “Well now what?”, the younger teen harshly whispered.

“You’re the one with the plan.”, the older drawled while glaring down the door, “Though I think we should hurry up before the big guy comes back. I’d hate to be on the receiving end of a punch.”

“We aren’t going anywhere without Celine!”, they hissed back. Clearly the matter was not up for debate.

The two continued looking for a way into the cage to the point where they split up and began looking on opposite ends. They still found nothing. The younger of the rescue duo made their way back to the forest side of the wagon to look for their older partner. They glared into the tree line wondering if he just up and went back home which would not surprise them in the least. “I should have guessed that he would go fuck off somewhere else.”, they grumbled before pulling their hood up.

Before they could take off to regroup, a shadow fell over them. “Well… The boss was right. Where there is one rat, there is always more.”, a smooth baritone said aloud.

There was only one thought running through their head while they whipped around, glaring holes through the slim man, ‘What happened to Sacha?’

“Oh? Feisty, are we?”, He then drew a dagger and cocked a crooked grin. His amber eyes glinting in the moonlight. “Just come easy. I don’t want to ruin any bonus goods.”

They rolled their dark brown eyes and huffed, they clearly weren’t looking for a fight. “I don’t think so. My friend and I were just leaving anyways.”, they quickly stated while looking for a way out.

“Do you mean the pretty boy?”, their eyes snapped back to him at that, “He was sniffing around where he didn’t belong. Rats, you know. They… have to be dealt with.”

It was at that moment, they fucked up. That small exchange was just enough for them to not be aware of their surroundings. Just enough for them to not hear the humanoid excuse for a wall get into position behind them. Right when they were about to charge the slim man, a dirty grin spread across his face and he looked right past them at his associate who quickly snatched them up by the leg and slammed them onto the ground in the same fashion. He then grabbed them by their hair to check out their face. Brown skin, mostly untouched aside from the recent scuffle. “Put them in this wagon. Chained to the bars.”, he grunted dismissively.

“Well tough luck kitten…”, the slender guy said whilst hoisting them up onto his shoulder.

With a wave of his palm, the wagon gate opened, and he stepped inside. The children inside all stared at him, fear radiating from them in waves while he drank it in. Their fear was true bliss, true ecstasy as he knew what would happen to them all. A fate greater than death awaited every single one of these lambs. A few moments passed before he snapped out of his blissful stupor and got to work with chaining up the new catch. In the back of his mind, he knew that this one would be a fighter but breaking them was strictly against their rules. All sacrifices were to come back intact and minimally damaged.

  
As he left, he paid no mind to the eyes glued to him from the back corner of this cage. How much damage could some snot-nosed brats do anyways? It wasn’t like they could even get out of the chains on their own and that’s not even accounting for them being the same as the wagon door. As he descended the ramp leading to the stock, he took one final look at the new catch and grinned.  
After his back faded from view, the young girl sitting in the back corner sat up and picked her way over to her unconscious friend. It was clear they were going to be unconscious for a few hours. A fresh bruise was blooming on their left eye and blood was trickling from their brow. Sacha was still nowhere to be found and she was secretly happy about that. He didn’t need to see them like this, defeated and injured. “Please be okay.”, Celine whispered to her unconscious friend.

With the moon now descending from the sky, the illegal caravan was gearing up to depart. To where, only the captors knew but it would be the last stop for many of the children captured thus far. Celine stirred with the jolt of the wagon nearly knocking her from her human pillow. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she took note of the foliage that slowly began to pass in and out of view. She blinked once, then twice realizing she could not have been asleep too long but long enough that they were leaving their home behind. Celine took a sideways glance at her friend, ‘I should probably wake Marce soon.’

The blood on their brow had long since dried up. Their face serene as if they weren’t just knocked unconscious by two boulder like fists. With her small hands, Celine gently shook Marce all the while hoping not to agitate whatever wounds they had as a result of trying to rescue her, but they didn’t stir. Another, rougher shake and still nothing. ‘How long will they be out?’, Celine thought while flopping on the hardwood floor with a great huff.

  
By now, the other unfortunate souls to be caged with them were quieted to a murmur. Some huddled in groups while others sat alone, blankly resigning themselves to whatever fate had in store for them. The trees were passing at a steady speed and the blue pinks of dawn were beginning to paint the sky. Celine listened to the bird song, but it was as if the bird themselves spoke of the untold fate that awaited them and when the wagons came to a stop, so too did the birds. Celine tried once more to awaken Marce, a face prod here, a rough shoulder shake there, and they finally came to. The disorientation and confusion were clear on Marce’s face, their brown orbs took in as much information as they could before settling onto Celine. “Are you okay?”, Celine’s light voice came out, “You were bleeding and I didn’t really know what to do and I don’t know where we are… I’m scared…”

Marce shook their head, trying to concentrate on cohesive thought, “mm fine… My head just feels like a sack of bricks right now…”

A moment passed between the two of them before Marce spoke again, “Have you seen Sacha?”

Celine slowly shook her head in response. Right when she was about to speak, a pair of voices grabbed her and Marce’s attention along with everyone else trapped in the mobile jailcell. The owners soon came into view and Celine immediately recognized the scruffy beard from last night. She hid behind Marce who’s head was craned to the side to get a good view of the people responsible for the shitshow they found themselves in. The larger man was in fact huge, it was no wonder they were knocked out for as long as they were. He was bald with a long scar cutting a swath through his face and down his cheek. The intimidation factor was further enhanced with the beady cold grey eyes to match his stony expression. Next to him was another that could be compared to a greasy drowned rat. Nearly emaciated in build, his greasy sandy hair hung low over his green eyes and clumped up all over. His face held a near-permanent sideways grin while he jittered in place, clearly incapable of staying still for too long. The pair continued whatever conversation they were having until they came to a full stop on the open side of the wagon. “Alright cattle! From here on, you all will be nothing but a number!”, the bald man shouted, “If you’re lucky, you won’t get a low assignment. If not, then… you’ll see.”

Celine’s eyes widened in fear as she slowly caught on to what was happening. She, her friends, and the other children were now slaves. At least that what she thought until she tuned into the rest of the monologue. “Your souls will all be dedicated to He who defends man! Rejoice as the defender will praise you for your worthy sacrifice!”, the greasy man spoke up with a manic grin.

As if to punctuate his claim, a line of hooded people began to file in behind him with their arms raised and a deer skull in the hands of the last one in the procession. Another line followed quickly after and quickly approached the door to each wagon. In a synchronized motion, they all opened at once and the children within were pulled out by their connected chains. With the group in Celine and Marce’s wagon being moved out, it soon came time for Celine to leave her friend. Marce fixed her with a hard stare that spoke volumes until they said one thing, “Do as you are told.”

With that Celine was pulled from view and Marce was the last one left in the makeshift cell. On the outside, one of the figures got the attention of the two ringleaders of the operation. The robed person began moving their arms about before gesturing at Marce making the skinny guy chuckle with a cocked head and the burly one merely shakes his head with a growing annoyance, “Go unchain the late catch Bates, then hook them in with the others.”

“Anything you say boss.”, he lazily salutes before sauntering off to unchain Marce.

Marce chose not to acknowledge his approach, until he crouched in front of them and tightly gripped their chin, forcing them to look at him. His slimy grin spread further across his features, “such a shame you have to be sacrificed… But I don’t make the rules here.”

Once released from the bars, Marce is then yanked to their feet and pulled outside to the group that just left the wagon. Looking around, they noticed at most twenty in their group and five wagons with holding cells attached to them. They continued to take in more visual information before locking eyes with a familiar face, Sacha. He pointedly looked from Celine to Marce before his group was pulled away. Marce watched them get herded into what looked like a run down, medium sized church. The paint was faded and most of the ground was dirt save for a few weeds the sprung up here and there. Soon after the first group was pulled in, the others followed shortly after until everyone was inside of the rundown church. On the inside, there was an altar with a dark substance staining the top and sides. The walls were lined with red and gold tattered tapestries whilst deer antlers decorated almost every nook and cranny.

  
Short lived was the view as they all were then taken down some stairs and into a damp, cold cellar. The walls were lined with various tools and chains while the very back of the cellar had a door like the one on the wagons. One by one, each minor was pulled into the room. As they passed the door, a robed person would wave a glowing hand over their chest. The dull red light would linger for a moment before going out and it was on to the next one. After what felt like an eternity, Celine was filed through the door followed shortly by Marce. Inside the room, each person still had their wrists bound together but they were free to move about the room with however little space they did have. It wasn’t too much longer before the last few were packed into the room and Bates stood in the doorway under the dim lighting. “Now, I hope you all will be grateful that we didn’t leave you chained together like… cattle”, he chuckled to himself, “You are all free to move about this room but if you try to run, you’ll be next!”

The murmurs in the room quieted as the room full of unfortunate souls looked on at Bates in pure fear. Marce, however, took to finding Celine and Sacha in the swath of bodies that were now packed into this less than accommodating space. After a few moments and mistakes, Marche finally finds the correct crop of auburn hair and embraces her in a tight hug, “Are you alright? I lost sight of you for a bit.”

Celine nods, “Are you alright, Marce? You still have dried blood on your forehead.”

Marce rubs at the blood and sighs, “Yeah… Have you seen Sacha at all? I caught sight of him for a quick moment before his group got pulled into the church.”

“Maybe he’s in the back somewhere.”, Celine ponders, “Is it true that we are going to die?”

Marche glanced at the young girl in shock. The question, while warranted, was also something they never expected to hear from someone Celine’s age. Marche bit their lip and looked away, sighing, “I’m not sure what’s going to happen Celine… I do know that as soon as we find Sacha, we will think up a way out of here.”

Celine merely nodded. There wasn’t much more she could say to that. Time was running low and it was clear that Marce was not going to go down without a fight. The resolve coming from them was enough to let Celine know that Marce would do everything in their power to protect her from whatever fate awaited them at the end of this.  
The duo continued to search amongst their fellow captives until they spotted Sacha’s long curly black hair. He was glaring down some poor child who had the misfortune of further upsetting him for one reason or another. Celine, lightening up a bit, bounded over to him and gave him a nudge from behind. “What the- Hey! Watch it!”, Sacha exclaimed with his accent breaking through.

“But Sacha!”, Celine pouted, “Marce and I have been trying to regroup with you… They have a plan to get us out.”

Sacha turned around with a tilt to his hip and a skeptical look at Marce, “Oh really? Do tell seeing as how these guys are using some shit, I’ve only seen in the few books I was forced to read.”

Marce rolled their eyes, “Keep bitching and I’ll leave you here. Maybe the god these loons worship will take a liking to ya.”

He gave a warning glare to Marce before smiling down at Celine, “As long as we both can get you out of here, I’m down for anything.”

It felt like some hours passed before the door opened again. The dim light made it hard to see but the telltale red glow was enough to let everyone know that is was just another hooded figure. By now, Marche, Sacha, and Celine were huddled in a corner closest to the entrance to get a good view of what was going on. If they were to escape, they needed a good judgement on who they were running from. For a split second, Sacha thought this was going to be easy. A walk in the park if they were just a bunch of robe wearing, magic wielding weirdos but his hopes were all but dashed when he saw the same light appear in four different sections.  
Panic ensued as the robed people rushed in and pulled the “owners” of the light out of the room with little else said after. The cries of the children soon faded into the distance while the ones lucky enough to remain in the room cried with fear and confusion. “Marce… How long will it be before us?”, Celine shakily asked.

“I don’t know… but we need to devise a plan soon”, came their solemn reply.

The days slowly dragged on bringing more trauma and more pain to the room full of hostages. With their numbers dwindling, the silence grew. They found no more reason to speak, just quietly and hopelessly wait until they became the next chorus of screams that echoed through the decrepit church. Around eight days after their capture, Celine sat with her eyes glued to the door while Marce and Sacha got some rest. She knew that it was about time for them to come collect the next group and she deeply feared for herself and her friends. Tense moments passed, those who remained also began to watch the door and listen for their approaching doom. Footsteps, distant at first and too many to be just one person. When the footsteps stopped just outside of the door, it was clear that something was different maybe even off. Hushed voices and stern whispers welcomed the room of frightened cattle as three figures entered the room, seemingly poring over a thick and clearly old book. Celine continued to watch them before one snatched the book from the other and roughly jabbed their finger at a page with an annoyed huff and snapped the book shut. One of the others waved their hand in an arc and repeated the daily process of ferrying children off to their deaths. Celine narrowed her eyes in thought after her captors left. She mentally went over the new exchange and a plan dawned on her, if these people knew magic maybe that was the source. She had to admit, it was definitely a stretch and there would probably be no way that Sacha nor Marce would begin to believe her, but it was worth a shot.

A few more hours passed before Celine could share her plan with them. She had more than enough time to concoct what she thought to be something sound and carefully mapped it out while Marce listened attentively and Sacha rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “Hold on. How do you know for sure that this book could be our way out?”, Marce questioned, “For all you know, it could have just been nothing.”

“They brought it down and were clearly frustrated about something! You have to trust me on this Marce! Sacha what do you think?”, the youngest argued.

Sacha merely rolled his eyes, “I, for one, don’t think that we would be able to just prance out of here and ask nicely for their book even IF it was our way to freedom. We have no way of getting the damn thing without possibly dying.”

Celine’s face fell. He was right, painfully so. They had no sound way of escaping and the morale in this room was abysmally low. The only way they could possibly escape is if the entire group rushed them and then scattered. Marce expectantly watched Celine’s expressions change while thoughts rushed through the little girl’s mind. “You are clearly thinking something.”, they gently prodded, “Share.”  
Uncertainty flashed across her face as she quickly glanced and the broken and demoralized group, “We could possibly stage a mass escape and grab the book in the confusion… I’m just wondering if we should even tell them…”

Sacha merely blinked in disbelief and Marce heavily considered the option, “The idea of a sudden escape could very well whip them into a frenzy. Its possible… if they don’t send too many in at once.”

Celine nodded and looked expectantly at Sacha, “Do you agree?”

The eldest, for once looking serious, nodded, “I’ll agree BUT we keep this between us and only us… Not like we really speak to anyone else here anyways. If any one of us gets pulled up sooner than planned, we act at that moment.”

Celine and Marce agreed to his conditions. The three of them personally knew that even if they all did escape, they may very well die in the process. The plan was fine-tuned until Celine dozed off, leaving her two eldest companions to watch over her.

A few more days passed after they settled on their escape plan. The three of them were merely finding ways to pass the time, until that dreaded door opened up, announcing the arrival of more death. One by one the lights showed themselves withing the room with the last one coming from Sacha. Fear filled him but he would not let it show. He knew that his fear would only make Celine upset and could permanently ruin their chances of escape. The cultists came in, began their routine of rounding up the sacrifices, only to be stopped by a shout from upstairs. The two at the door looked back, then at the two they currently had before slamming the door shut and rushing off, dragging the two with them.  
Sacha, feeling his tension finally drop, released a breath he didn’t know he was even holding. He put his hand up to his heart and felt it hammering away, “We need to leave…”

“You think?!”, Marce snapped while shakily making their way over to the door. They listened carefully while checking over the door, the commotion going on upstairs was punctuated by a shrill scream.

Celine came up next to them, “They did leave in a hurry. Maybe if we just- “

She pushed on the door in front of them and it slowly began to give way, opening up to the dimly lit hallway they were ushered through seemingly so long ago. The three looked at each other and looked back at the children that remained. There was still a good number of them left. Enough to make enough of a distraction was another story. A few moments passed before a voice spoke up, “Look! The doors open!”

Then came another, “Can we leave?”

“I wanna go home!”

The voices soon rose into a clamor. One by one they pushed past Celine, Sacha, and Marce until it became a steady stream and then a stampede filled with desperate kids who simply wanted to go home. The trio got swept up in the chaos of escape that finally made its way up the stairs and out of the cellar, meeting with a confused group of cultists. The air was so tense, that a single movement could set off either group. “RUN! THEY CAN’T TAKE US ALL!”, Sacha yelled, jumpstarting the stampede of children towards the rundown wooden door. Amongst the commotion, Celine and Marce looked around for the book that could be pivotal to their survival. The floor above the seemingly sprawling basement was too small to possibly have many hiding places, if the book was even hidden in the first place. Celine looked back to see Sacha pushing cultists off of the children and, even with their magic, they were still just people as he bashed one’s head against a loose stone. “Celine look!”, Marce exclaimed, “The altar. It’s there!”

Without a second thought, the small girl rushed up to the altar, nearly slipping on blood and gore and grabbed the tome. She then hurriedly made her way back to Marce to grabbed her and booked it for the door with Sacha catching on and following close behind. Outside, some children were still running, others fighting and some dead. The trio took no time in running in the direction opposite of the commotion not knowing that one of the ringleaders saw them running off together. Bates, in all of his drowned rat-like grandeur, shouted to get his bosses attention, “Hey! We got runners!”

“Yeah ah know Bates! They all runnin’!!”, the bald man angrily shouted back. “Ta hells with this! Get tha dogs! If they die ta tha dogs, then we just go get more!”

Further into the woods, Marce and her friends continued running until Sacha began to slow down. The other two stopped as well and looked at him in confusion. “What up?”, Marce asked.

“I think we are far enough away. Open the book and figure out the rest of this.”, he demanded, out of breath.

Celine placed the book on the ground and began flipping through the book. It was mostly notes and mentions of an Alastor. She keeps flipping through while Sacha kept watch and Marce looked on, “It keeps mentioning something called an Alastor. Aside from that there’s nothing here about magic…”

“Keep looking. We still have some time.”, Sacha snapped.

Celine nodded and kept flipping through the book until she came upon a complex diagram. Curious, she checked the next few pages only to find more diagrams and finally an explanation as to what it was, a summoning circle. A howl broke through the air, making them all look up. “We need to move! Now!”, Marce ordered whilst picking up the book and pulling Celine along with them.

“Where the fuck did they get dogs?! Where were the dogs?!”, Sacha yelled while running.

“We are just as confused as you are! Keep running!”, Marce yelled back at him.

They ran and ran until Sacha finally broke, “What the fuck did you think this would accomplish?!”

Marce stepped up to defend Celine from his onslaught, “We got the book alright! There was something about a summoning circle, maybe we can get their god or whatever to protect us. Now how do we do this?”

Sacha growled with mounting irritation, “Fuck if I know! This was all her idea!”

He was clearly ready to abandon the plan and just run until he found help. It seemed like a better plan to him anyways. Celine set the book back down and opened it, “Lets just start before they catch up!”  
With urgency, they began poring over the pages and copying the diagram. For all they knew, it was just some ruse made up by a bunch of forest loons but the magic, they were certain that the magic was real. Some time passed as the sun was considerably lower in the sky when barking and howling could be heard once again. “Quick! They’re coming!”, Celine piped up.

Marce picked the book up and gave the circle one last glance over, “We have to do this now.”

Their statement was punctuated by the heavy book hitting the ground and Sacha huffed, “Fine. Let’s start this and finally be free. What do we need to “activate” it?”

“A blood offer. Nothing like killing but enough to cover the drawing on the page in the center.”, Marce replied.

“Best we’ve got is either a sharp rock or a stick… Unless someone- “, Celine was cut off as a snarl broke through the air followed by a gunshot.

The click of a gun could be heard again followed by more vicious snarling. “I’m more impressed it took this long to find you.”, Bates snickered whilst taking aim again, “Now stop what you’re doing and come quietly.”

Sacha, being the strong-willed soul that he was, stood taller and turned his back to Marce and Celine. “Finish up. I’m not letting this fucker take us all back.”

“Playing the hero, are we?”, it was clear that Bates was mocking him while keeping his eyes on Celine and Marce, “You two better put that down!”

Another warning shot before he began to aim directly at Celine who continued working. Sacha stepped forward, “I’m right here!”

“Your point pretty boy? I know you can’t fight.”, Bates whistled, and more dogs showed up. Their jaws snapping and snarling as they circled around Sacha.

“You move and those hounds tear your pretty little throat out.”, the rat-like man hissed at him. “Now, since those two can’t seem to listen- “He pulled the trigger, hitting Celine right in her throat.

Blood poured from the entry point as she gasped, trying to make a sound. The look of shock etched into her features while she tried to register what happened. “Celine!”, Marce cried out to the dying young girl.

“Move and it will be you next!”, Bates screeched.

Panic filled Marce’s thoughts, they couldn’t protect Celine. What was the point if she’s bleeding out on the forest floor and she only died trying to find some way for them to exit this nightmare. Her thoughts shattered with the sounds of Sacha screaming, the dogs were on him and he screamed curses at Bates who merely giggled at his suffering. “Another who simply cannot listen!”, he then looked at Marce, “But you can. So, what will you do?”

Marce closed her eyes at the now pained sounds coming from Sacha. The dogs kept on him until he stopped fighting and lay still on the ground. Bite marks littered his body and his throat was a mess of blood, slobber, and torn flesh. Celine, by now, was dead. Blood soaked into the page that her body laid next to. This wasn’t how any of this was supposed to go.  
Bates continued to watch Marce. His eyes trained on them, looking for the slightest hint of aggressive movement. ‘I have to see this through.’, Marce thought to themselves.  
The plan had to go on. Only so her friends would not have died in vain. Only so this rat looking fuck could get what’s coming to him. Only so no one else would have to endure the pain that they are feeling now. They dove for the page, “In servitutem voco! Ut semel totus contractus redeas ad infernum!”

The words spilled out with moderate error and was hastily followed by yet another gunshot. Marce screamed, holding her abdomen, and curling into fetal position. “You all really just don’t listen!”, he cackled at them, watching them writhe in pain.  
Meanwhile, more blood, Marce’s blood, began soaking into the now saturated page. Bates continued watching them bleed out, grinning at his latest work. His boss won’t be happy, but they could definitely find more victims for the sacrifices.  
Marce felt their vision going out and time certainly felt like it was slowing to a halt. ‘I knew this wasn’t going to work’, they thought while letting their eyes close.

“My, my! What a mess we have here!”, a rather loud and jovial voice stated, “Though it would be the first time a corpse summoned me! Ha!”

Marce felt something poke at their chest, “Well come on then! What did you want? Fame? Money? Any other insignificant pleasures?”

They opened their eyes and saw a fuzzy red blob. Strange. They merely pointed in the last direction they remembered Bates being in and croaked out, “Revenge. Kill. Him.”

Bates jumped when the man’s face snapped up to him with a rather twisted grin. He was baffled, floored even, that this know-nothing managed to summon Alastor himself and for what? Petty revenge over some friends who died? “That’s all fine and well but I will be taking… well whatever is left of your soul afterwards!”, Alastor chuckled, “Simply a mess! I assume it’s a deal?”

With their remaining strength, Marce lifted their hand which was quickly taken by his. “Truly interesting to make a deal with the dying…”, he muttered to himself before returning to full height.

“Now, this corpse here wishes you dead!”, he spoke to Bates who clearly had not vacated the area, “And I for one and feeling quite peckish! After all, my dinner was interrupted prior to being dragged here!”

“L-Lord Alastor! I- We welcome your summoning!”, Bates stammered out, “That know-nothing doesn’t know a thing about you!”

Alastor merely stood there with a bored smiled while the man before him droned on and on about something or another. He could really not care about another cult that claimed to know everything about him and wish to recreate the world in his image. That was all wacky nonsense!

“-we only sing your praises and wish for your blessing! We know everything about you!”, Bates went on only to be interrupted by a snarl, not from Alastor but from one of his own hounds.

Alastor’s grin grew, seemingly splitting his face as his head tilted to a ninety-degree angle. It was annoying enough that he must listen to something like this every few years and make a mess as a result, but a dog? “You claim to know everything about me.”, his voice began to distort, “and yet you have dogs.”

  
His grin grew ever wider, his pupils to radio dials, “I. Hate. Dogs.”


	2. I'm Pandora, Who the Hell Are You?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sneak peek at chapter 2!

‘I’m falling. I know I am.’

‘Whats worse is this searing heat. This hot air really isn’t helping the discomfort.’

The wind continues whipping about, steadily getting faster.

‘Should I open my eyes?’, comes a thought.

‘You should.’, comes the unexpected reply.

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to follow me on twitter @TazaraTerumi!
> 
> You can ask questions and see art for the fic before its added!


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